Denver's lifestyle and real estate info page

May 11, 2007

Spring Clean ~ Home Maintenance

Spring is upon us which means there is a long list of home maintenance items that need some attention. Yes, I know cleaning off the BBQ grill is the one that is going to yield the tasty dividends but seasonal home maintenance is essential to making the most of your investment and more importantly your home.

Check your gutters for blockage, if necessary you can scoop out the debris with a old kitchen spoon or purchase a gutter cleaning tool from a home improvement store. After run a hose up on the roof and into the gutters to make sure the down-spouts are clear. (tip: make sure downspouts are positioned to divert the water away from the foundation of the house, they tend to move a bit in the snow-pack and thaw.)

Examine the window screens for rips and tears, dead branches, kids and animals reap havoc on unsuspecting window and door screens. An easy fix is to purchase a screen repair kit it includes a few different sized pieces if self adhesive screen to cover up the holes. Another way is to buy some screen stock and cut pieces slightly bigger than the location of the tear and sew it into place with fishing line. And finally if need be the whole screen can be replaced, take the old screen out and using a small nail pull the black or grey cord out of the small channel on the inside of the screen frame, discard the old screen and cord (save a piece of the old cord to match up the right size of the new cord you will need). At the home improvement store purchase a roll of screen, new cord and a cord roller (plastic rollers are the best, make sure you buy enough screen and cord to fix all of your jobs), at home lay the empty frame out cord track side facing you and lay the new screen over it positioning the corner of the screen 1" over the track in the top corner and now lay the new cord on-top of the screen that is over the track and using the roller push it into the track, keeping the screen taut and moving around the track in one continuous piece, cut the cord when you reach the starting point from the opposite direction. After this is complete and you are satisfied with the tautness of the screen Trim the excess screen off with an exacto or utility knife, keeping right on the edge of the track and being very careful not to cut yourself or into the screen, begin to trim. Now reinstall the screen on the windows and keep pesky insects out.

Go around the outside of the house and look for anything that might be able to collect hold water in turn housing mosquito larve (ie. old buckets, rubbish piles, low drainage spots in the ground that can hold water). Fill in low ground levels and store or discard anything that might be a good breeding ground. The heavy spring rain and warm weather are prime breeding conditions for mosquitos, who hatch their larve by the millions in standing water.

Change the cooling pads and clean/treat the reservoir in your swamp cooler also checking the water supply line for any leaks that might of incurred over the winter months. This also applies for central air in houses using forced air as a means to cool, check the air filters, chances are the months of running the furnace with all the windows and doors shut tight have collected a nice build up on them. Also consider upgrading to a allergen micro filter, they don't cost too much more and help with allergen filtration if you suffer from seasonal allergies.

This one is directed towards your vehicle: SERVICE TIME. You spend a lot more time in you vehicle in harsh driving conditions in the winter than you think and all the months of cold starting your engine, sudden braking, and driving in magnesium chloride and sand takes a lot more out of your vehicle than you might realize. Get a thorough inspection done including brakes, transmission, radiator and engine. I know some people do this on a regular basis but some people don't and now that you're in the spring cleaning mood why not pay a little T.L.C. to your vehicle, maybe you don't need an inspection, well maybe clean the 5 months worth of magnesium chloride off the underside of your car, or take it to a detailer and get the "works". If you are of the few who regularly take your car for service and keep it clean the hats off to you.

Spring home maintenance tips were provided by Travis Hooker, a Denver home remodeler. He invites you to email him with additional questions regarding these maintenance tips. 303.807.0069

Comments

I'll take note of these, make a schedule out of it, and maybe assign some of the people in the house to do some of the work. I'll leave the tough jobs to the home maintenance experts. Do you think that's going to be effective?

Home maintenance is very important for any home owner. You don't have to be a pro to check and maintain the problematic areas, such as gutters and windows. Prevention is certainly way better than spending a lot of money on costly repairs. Thanks for the tips, these are very useful.

I do have the habit of checking everything in the house at least once a month. I take particular care in the roofing and gutters since I live in Dallas, and the elements can be very unforgiving on the roof. The extreme heat can melt the rubber seals, so I have to seal them again. It's a pain to do, but it does wonders on rainy days.